


Fighting

by jaydream



Category: NCIS
Genre: Drama & Romance, Established Relationship, Family, Friendship, M/M, Male-Female Friendship, Medical Trauma, Tragedy, Trauma, established Anthony DiNozzo/Timothy McGee
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-01
Updated: 2015-03-01
Packaged: 2018-03-15 21:55:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,863
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3463424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jaydream/pseuds/jaydream
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tim was fighting, and that's all Tony needed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fighting

Tim was brain dead. Or at least, that's what they told him. But if Tim was brain dead, then how come he seemed somewhat there in his head? His eyes, his smile? Surely, if he was brain dead, he wouldn't be somewhat there. Even on the doctor's standards.

 

Tony DiNozzo sighed heavily, rolling out of bed and running both hands over his face. It was six in the morning, like every morning these days. The routine was always the same: get up, shower, coffee, breakfast on the go, drive to the hospital, and stay in the room for the rest of the day. Repeat for a week.

 

The apartment was dull lately. There was no laughter, no cute moments, and no smiles. Everything seemed dimmer. Everything seemed heavier. Even Tony himself barely goofed around or smiled anymore. Tired lines were more prominent. Ever since his boyfriend and co-worker Tim McGee got into his car accident, nothing had been the same. Even work was duller. Not that Tony had particularly been at work in the last month. He was lucky, though. Everyone at NCIS fully understood, and that was good enough.

 

The diagnosis had been grim. Brain trauma at first, Tim was fine. Just a few bumps and bruises, a concussion and falling in and out of consciousness now and then. But he was alert and alive, and Tony was grateful for that. Not long after, though, Tim started going downhill. Seizures erupted, the consciousness started becoming less and less, and eventually a coma happened. While the coma only lasted a short week and Tim regained consciousness, the doctors had discovered that Tim became brain dead. Or at least, that is what they supposed.

 

Tony didn't believe them. At least, not fully. Sure, his boyfriend might be “brain dead”, but he wasn't entirely too far gone. Tim smiled, he looked at Tony and on rare occasions, let out a tiny sound or two. Tony held his tongue, but he knew that if Tim was completely gone, he wouldn't be able to do a lick of any of that. He was, at most, maybe halfway brain dead. If he was able to function somewhat, Tony hoped that he could take the love of his life home and care for him for the rest of their lives.

 

But the thing of it was that Tim only did those things when Tony himself was around. While Gibbs visited along with Abby, Ellie, and even Jimmy, Tim didn't react to them like he did to Tony. Yes, there was reaction, but none like any of them had ever seen with Tony around. There was actual light back into his eyes. Usually a dull, dead green turned back into brightness. The green eyes Tony fell in love with came back, even if just for a split second. Everyone saw it at least once, and Gibbs had even argued with the attending doctors that Tim had to be at least a little bit lucid, even if he couldn't speak fully or eat on his own. But Tony didn't care. Tim could be fully brain dead and he would still believe that Tim could do these things like smile and look at him. Nobody got their connection. They were more than lovers. They were soulmates. It didn't matter what obstacle came their way. Somehow or another, they would always know each other. That's what Tony chose to believe. Screw the damn doctors.

 

Fueling himself on coffee in the waiting room, Tony checked his watch every so often. He knew that Tim usually didn't wake on his won until almost eight. Even though he got up early, Tony never wasted time in getting to the hospital, just in case something new happened. He didn;t even bother to dress properly. Mostly rugged jeans, sandals, and his Ohio State hoodie. Tony didn't even bother to put in his contacts, throwing on his glasses and heading out the door as soon as he could. Tim was the only thing in his life that ever mattered, and that wasn't about to change now.

 

On the dot of eight, Tony tossed his to-go coffee cup and walked into Tim's room. Taking a deep and tired breathe, Tony opened the door of Tim's dimly lit room and walked in quietly. Sometimes Tim was asleep, and he always liked to be quiet just in case. Today, his boyfriend was in fact still asleep, and Tony figured he must have had a rough night between the nurses checking on him every hour on the hour and quite possibly being in pain. Unfortunately, nobody could ever really know whether or not Tim was in pain. They had to guess and that on it's own was pain for Tony.

 

Stepping over to Tim's bed, Tony very slightly smiled as he rested his eyes on his lover. Nothing had really changed on Tim's part. He still had that same honey-brown hair cut short with slight length in front so that he could push it back, the same pale skin, the same scar on his neck, and the same little freckle marks here and there. His hands were still as slender and delicate than ever, his lips pouty and kissable. The only difference there ever was were his eyes, the myriad of monitors surrounding the bed and connected to Tim himself, the oxygen mask, and the entirety of being in the hospital itself.

 

Reaching over above Tim's head, Tony turned on the light, then leaning over the bed rail. Tony took a gentle hand to Tim's cheek, stroking it gently and kissing the other man's forehead. “Hey, Timmy. I'm back. I don't know if you're sleeping or not, but if you can hear me, I would like for you to wake up.”

 

Two hours passed slowly for Tony as he kept speaking to his boyfriend, kissing his cheek or head, taking his hand, or stroking his hair. Sometimes, Tim took a while to wake up. The doctors had said it was a part of the brain injury. It didn't matter to Tony. He waited patiently, and would continue to do so.

 

Eventually, Tim started to stir by way of his hand twitching, fingers bending slightly. Tony smiled, brushing his hand against Tim's hair gently and spoke up again. “Good boy, Timmy. Time to wake up for me.” Being ever so careful, Tony lowered the bed rail and sat next to Tim on the edge of the small bed, holding his boyfriend's hand.

 

When Tim opened his eyes, they were dull as usual. He didn't look at all there and his twitching had slowed. Still, Tony bust out the biggest grin you could ever see in this situation and leaned over to kiss his boyfriend's forehead. “Hey sleepy head, welcome to the weekend.” Softly, Tony ran his thumb across Tim's hand and continued to talk to him. It was the only thing to keep Tony sane when Tim was awake, and it usually got the light back into his boyfriend's eyes.

 

Another hour passed of Tony gently kissing Tim at random and talking to him about anything. Sometimes, he would ask questions in case Tim happened to give him a response by some miracle. Tony made sure all of his touches and kisses were gentle and hopefully familiar to Tim. It never failed him yet.

 

Looking always directly into Tim's eyes, Tony gently caressed his lover's face again. “Can you give me a smile, Tim? Be nice. Maybe you can make this damn hospital room a little brighter.” Tony grinned softly at Tim, rubbing his thumb across the familiar pale, soft cheek.

 

Stirring slightly and blinking slowly, Tim didn't offer any response right away. His hand moved against Tony's slowly at first, turning his eyes away from Tony for a moment to stare off into nothing. But when his eyes dropped back down to look at the other man, they were lighter. They were aware and alive, even if just a little bit. Tony grinned wider and kissed Tim's forehead. “Attaboy, Timmy. There you are.”

 

At first, Tim still didn't respond. But when Tony spoke up in the most enthusiastic and happiest way, there was a spark. Tim locked his eyes right onto Tony's blue ones and slowly grinned. Relieved that this kind of response was still being made, Tony took a stressed breathe out and grinned back, laughing softly. “There you go! See I knew you could smile for me, babe.”

 

Reaching over, he played his fingers softly against Tim's cheek. “The best smile I ever saw. I remember the first time I ever saw you smile. Back when you were first joining the team. I swear I never saw a more bright, adorable, true smile in my life, Tim. There's absolutely nobody who smiles like you and it's incredible. It's beautiful. Just like you.”

 

While Tim's grin faded into a small, simple smile, it didn't deter Tony from his happiness in seeing it. It felt like Tim was able to respond better almost everyday. It gave Tony hope and a reason to get out of bed every single damn morning.

 

“You know, Tim, maybe if you keep this up, the doctor will let me take you home,” Tony's grin went down into a timid smile, thinking of everything he would have to do for the rest of Tim's life. Still, he knew that he would do it for the love of his life. “I bet you would like that, huh? Instead of being in this dark, stuffy room all the time. You could come home with me. We can watch movies, have dinner together, you can nap as much as you would like in our comfortable bed....”

 

Tim blinked slowly, still smiling in Tony's direction. He seemed to be taking in everything Tony was saying, but the other man wasn't entirely sure if it was somehow registering in Tim's subconscious. While Tim elicited responses now and then, it was never clear to anyone whether or not the man understood.

 

“You know you mean the world to me, right?” Tony softly spoke again after a moment, keeping his eyes on Tim's and caressing his cheek. “It doesn't matter if you're all that here or not. You're still the love of my life, Tim. I would do anything for you. I wish it was me like this instead of you, but I can't change that. I can't change anything about what happened. But I can still adore you and love you and find you the most handsome and sexy man in the world. Because you're my boyfriend. You're my soulmate and you're the only thing that matters to me right now. I don't care whether you're one hundred percent brain dead or fifty percent. You're in there somewhere....”

 

Tears stung Tony's eyes, hot and heavy, ready to fall. “You're in there, Timothy McGee, I know you are and you better damn well keep it that way. I can't lose you. I can't live my life without you. You're my Probie, always. I don't care what the doctors say. I don't care what anyone in this damn hospital says. You're in there and I see it. And not just me. Gibbs, Ellie, Abby, everyone. Everyone sees it. You just … you just need to break through that wall somehow. And I know you can do it. You can do anything, Tim. You're the damned smartest man I know. And I'm going to be here everyday to help you. I'm going to talk to you, kiss you, hold you, and act like you're still the man I met and fell in love with. Nothing has changed, Tim. Nothing. Please, I hope you understand that. I hope you understand how much I adore you and love you. I hope you somehow deep in there that you understand everything I tell you and do.”

 

Silence then filled the room as Tony stopped speaking and let his tears fall. He continued stroking Tim's cheek lovingly, as his boyfriend's lucidness began fading. It happened like this everyday. Tim wasn't there for very long, but it was a lifetime for Tony.

 

Swallowing hard and wiping his tearful cheeks on his sleeve, Tony took a shaken breath, standing up and putting the bed rail back up. “I'll be right back, Timmy, okay? I just need some air for a bit,” Tony smiled crookedly and leaned over to kiss Tim's head. “You could use some rest. It's almost noon.” Turning off the light and making sure his boyfriend was comfortable and covered up, Tony once again delivered another loving head kiss. “I love you, Tim. I love you so much and nothing will ever change that.”

 

Stepping outside with the room's door shut behind him, Tony took a deep breathe and headed for the waiting area, stopping with a tiny smile when he saw Ellie sitting in the room on her phone. “What brings you by so early?”

 

Looking up suddenly, Ellie pocketed her phone and stood up. “Came by to see you. I know you like to come in early everyday. Figured when I didn't see you here, you were in the room already so I just waited.”

 

Tony nodded, his eyes still red from crying, face blotched. Of course, this didn't get past Ellie and she immediately hugged him tightly. “Rough today?”

 

“Yeah, a bit,” Tony hugged Ellie back, happy to have her there. She was definitely like the little sister he never had and it was always relieving to have her at the hospital with him.

 

“How is he today?” Ellie gave her friend another tight hug before pulling back and looking at him.

 

“Same as everyday,” Tony sighed heavily and sat down. “Smiled for a bit, looked at me like usual. Nothing different. Nothing worse, nothing better. He's just … still all not there.”

 

Nodding, Ellie sat beside Tony and put her hands on his arm. “It's still better than nothing, though, right? I mean, he's in there somewhere. We all know it. We've all seen it. It's just … he can't figure out how to break through.”

 

Tony nodded. “That's what I told him. I told him that we all knew he was still there. But it doesn't matter to me. I'll—I'll do anything for him. It doesn't matter if he's all the way there or not at all.” Taking a moment, Tony took in a deep breathe and leaned his head back. “I just want to bring him home.”

 

Ellie crossed her eyebrows. “Home? I mean—that's great, I'm glad you want to do that, but do you think that's best?”

 

“Better than this stuffy place with those idiot doctors,” Tony spoke crossly, looking over at Ellie with determination in his eyes. “Ellie, he's there. He's looking at me, he's smiling, heck he's kind of eating with some help and the damn tube. It's not like he's completely helpless. Yeah, maybe on his own, but if someone was taking care of him twenty-four-seven...”

 

“True,” Ellie agreed softly. “But would you be able to take that on? You would have to do everything for him, Tony.”

 

“You don't think I know that?” Tony frowned. “Ellie, what if that was Jake? What would you do?”

 

Silent for a moment, Ellie thought of her husband in the situation and sighed with a nod. “I would take him home and care for him until his or my dying breathe.”

 

“Exactly. I will gladly quit NCIS and take up a at-home job if it meant I could have the love of my life home with me,” Tony spoke softly. “I would do anything for Tim, El.”

Nodding softly, Ellie looped her arms through Tony's and hugged it softly with her head resting on his shoulder. “I know you would. I think any of us would.” She paused for a moment before speaking up again. “Is he resting?”

 

“Yeah. He woke up late, but he was aware for a while,” Tony leaned his head back against the wall and sighed heavily. “I thought I would let him get a nap in.”

 

Eventually exhausted, Tony fell asleep in the waiting room with Ellie, head on top of hers. The blonde didn't mind, though, keeping busy on her phone and making sure her brotherly figure got as much rest as he needed. But when Tony woke up and moved to a bench, Ellie decided to visit Tim herself and entered the room, flicking on the light and gently touching Tim's arm.

 

“Hey, you, it's Ellie,” she smiled gently as she was able to coax Tim awake and sat on the bed beside him. “Hey Tim. Hope you're feeling a little bit better today. Tony's taking a nap out in the waiting room, so I thought maybe I would come in and see how you were doing.”

 

Having a large family consisted mostly of brothers, Ellie's heart broke to see her friend and other brotherly figure this way. The team was like her second family and seeing any of them hurt, broken, or sad made her upset. And it was hard making Ellie upset.

 

Taking Tim's hand into her own, Ellie smiled sweetly and continued to speak. “Tony tells me you smiled again today. That's great! Maybe if you just—you just keep it up, you can leave here. You can see Tony as much as you like and me, and Abby and Gibbs....”

 

Pausing, Ellie blinked when she swore she heard Tim make a small utterance. She wasn't sure if it was just his usual, quick noises or if he was maybe trying to make words out. Heart pounding, she moved closer. “What was that? Hmmm?”

 

Tim blinked slowly, his eyes dull, but his body fidgeting slightly. Ellie didn't want him to get upset or worked up, so she spoke softly. “Hey, it's okay. Don't force it. Take your time. I know you want to talk so badly but … but take it easy, okay? Relax. If you can think, think it out. You can do it, McGee. I know you can.”

 

Leaning in towards Tim with the utmost impatience, Ellie held his hand and bit on her lip, hearing him making small whines and grunts at random. She was nervous, but if Tim could utter something, it would be a damn miracle.

 

Speaking softly now and then to Tim, Ellie was sure her heart was going to leap out of her chest. She wasn't sure if she should go get Tony, in fear that Tim would say something without her and then what? All she could do was hope that Tim would do it again in front of Tony, if he did anything at all.

 

Tim blinked slowly again, his eyebrows scrunching up as if he was trying to concentrate on what he wanted to do. Ellie watched quietly and in anticipation. When almost thirty minutes went by with no words coming out, she was certain that it was just one of Tim's random noise fits.

 

But then, out of nowhere, the tiniest little word came out and Ellie was shocked. Immediately, she ran to the door of Tim's room and called out towards the waiting area. “Tony! Tony come here right now!”

 

Awakened by Ellie's voice, Tony bolted up half awake and ran over. “What? Is something wrong?”

 

“Get in here, get in here quick,” Ellie grabbed Tony by the arm, closing the door and ran over to Tim's bed. “I have been sitting here for the last almost fourty-five minutes now listening to him do his whines and grunts and fits.”

 

“Okay?” Tony raised an eyebrow, sitting on the bed beside his boyfriend, taking his hand. “Ellie, that's normal.”

 

“No, no, no you don't understand!” Ellie was out of breathe, hands waving in the air trying to explain herself. “Just … just look at him for a minute. Okay? Talk to him. PLEASE. I know he'll do it again.”

 

Confused, but intrigued nonetheless, Tony turned his attention to an awake Tim, and smiled. “Hey handsome. Did you have a good rest?” Leaning over, he kissed Tim's cheek, holding his lover's hand gently. “Ellie seems very excitable. What'd you do without me, mister?”

 

Tim blinked for a moment, seeming to register the switch from Ellie back to Tony and almost instantly, he grinned. Tony smiled wider, stroking Tim's hair. “Well it's nice to see you smile faster for a change. That's new.” Tony looked back towards Ellie, who huffed and shooed him to look back at Tim. “Tim? Timmy can you do something for me? Are you doing your noises again?”

 

Grinning still, Tim didn't do anything for a minute or so. He moved his fingers against Tony's hand once in a while, but there were no noises or whines. Confused, Tony pressed on. “Timmy? Are you with me, handsome?”

 

“I swear. He did it. He did it, Tony, I swear he did,” Ellie huffed sitting down, leaning over the bed rail. “Tim? Tim can you show Tony what you did? Like you showed me? Is that okay?”

 

Tony continued to stroke Tim's hair, watching his boyfriend intently. Tim was still smiling eyes locked on the other man. Then, he started to hum and whine.

 

“Shhhh, it's okay,” Tony spoke gently and lovingly, scooting closer. “It's alright, Tim. You're fine. It's okay.”

 

Ellie bit her lip in anticipation, tapping her foot slightly. She needed Tony to see this. She needed it more than she needed air and inside her head, she was pleading.

 

Tony kept his eyes on Tim as his boyfriend continued to randomly making little sounds, eyes still on him, that same adorable little smile still on his lips. Smiling back in hopes to help Tim out a little, Tony gently touched Tim's cheek and was shocked at what happened next.

 

Tim closed his eyes for a moment, physically leaned into Tony's hand and opened his eyes back up. Before anything else could happen, the tiniest little word once again came out of his mouth.

 

“T'ny...”

 

Ellie grinned widely and stood up in excitement. “Yes! Yes he did it. He did it again. Tony did you hear him?”

 

Blinking in shock, Tony wasn't sure if he was dreaming or not. Looking from Tim to Ellie and back to Tim again, he tried to make sense of what just happened. “He—he said my name. There's—there's no way...”

“He did!” Ellie hugged Tony around the shoulders excitedly. “Tony, he did. He said your name. He said it TWICE. He knows you're here. Tony, he KNOWS you.”

 

Tearing up, Tony leaned over, kissing Tim's forehead, tears pouring down his cheeks. “He did. He said my name. El ….”

 

“I know,” Ellie took a shaky breathe herself, hands over her mouth. “He's there, Tony. He's there.”

 

Tears streaming down his face, Tony looked Tim in the eyes and grinned widely. “You bet he's there. You bet he is. He's fighting, Ellie. He's going to make it through, whether it's all the way or not.” Taking a shuddering breathe, Tony gave his boyfriend a bright grin. “You're a fighter, Tim McGee. You hear me, babe? You're a fighter. And you're going to be fine. You're going to be fine.”

 


End file.
